Winston Beach F.C.
| dissolved = | ground = Rainbow Stadium | capacity = 9,500 | owner = | chairman = | manager = Olavo Moreira | coach = | currentleague = League B | currentposition = | lastseason = | lastleaguea = League A | lastposition = 14th (relegated via playoffs) | current = | website = | firstgame = | largestwin = | worstdefeat = | topscorer = | fansgroup = | honours = | American = }} Winston Beach Football Club is a professional football club based in Winston, St. Gregory. The team plays in League B, the second tier of the St. Gregory Football Association. Winston Beach joined the SGFA in 1989. Their lone League A championship in 2006-07, widely considered to be an upset at the time, was the first time since the new millennium that a team outside the Big Three had won the League A title, and were the only team to have done so until Rivergate accomplished the feat in 2012-13. The team plays its home games at the 9,500-seat Rainbow Stadium in downtown Winston. History The town of Winston, a tourist community on the southern west coast of St. Gregory, became home to a football club of its own in 1985, when two local hoteliers received approval to build a stadium behind the rows of condominiums that line the shore. Four years later, with the stadium completed and a roster built, Winston Beach F.C. were the last club to enter the SGFA before the expansion to a third tier the following season. In 1995-96, Beach finished as champions of League B and were promoted to League A for the first time in their history. Although they finished bottom of the table in 1996-97, the league expanded from 12 to 16 teams the following year, meaning no teams were relegated and Beach returned to League A again the following year. Beach finished the 2013-14 League A season in 14th place and were forced to play a one-game playoff against the winner of the League B playoffs, Starrs County. Beach won the game 1-0 on a 90th minute header by Diego Marcos and earned the right to remain in League A for the 2014-15 season. Beach were relegated at the end of the 2015-16 League A season, just nine years after winning the league championship. Their attempt to bounce back resulted in the team finishing the 2016-17 League B season in third place and securing a berth in the 2017 playoffs, however they were defeated 5-4 on aggregate by RivalSport after a 2-1 loss in the first leg and a 3-3 draw in the second leg at Rainbow Stadium. The following year, however, they led League B in goals scored and goal difference to finish second on the table behind eventual champions Calabria, earning promotion back to the top flight at the second time of asking. In 2018-19, Beach's first season back in League A, a late-season slump saw the team slip to 14th on the table, avoiding automatic relegation on goal difference. They were entered in the relegation playoffs where they were defeated 2-0 by Manorham, sending them back to League B for 2019-20. Colors, crest and nickname The club's official colors are purple, black, red, orange and gold and the crest was designed to incorporate the sunsets on the beach. A star was added to the crest following the team's League A championship in 2006-07. The team is nicknamed the Rainbows, a name originally given by fans after the rainbow-like sunset colored stripes that appeared on the front of the shirts in the team's first season. In 2002, purple became the primary club color but the nickname stuck. Kits The club's first kits were white with trim in purple, red and yellow, mimicking the crest. As a result, fans took to nicknaming the team the Rainbows. Purple has been the home color since 2002. The previous white kits became the club's away uniform at that time and have remained in place for most years since. Since 2016, Beach's uniforms are supplied by Under Armour. Prior to 2016, adidas had been the team's kit supplier, signing a 5-year deal in 2011. The club began the 2015-16 season without a shirt sponsor after Marriott International's two-year deal expired at the end of 2014-15, however local seaplane airline WinstonAir signed a deal to become the club's shirt sponsor for the remainder of the season in November 2015. WinstonAir renewed their contract in June 2016 to remain the shirt sponsor for another two seasons. Players Current squad : As of August 16, 2019 Note: Players without a flag are from St. Gregory. Players with an asterisk (*) are from outside the United States or its territories, or have represented a non-U.S. territory at international level, but hold either citizenship or permanent residency in the U.S. and thus do not count towards the league cap on foreign players. Out on loan Former players :Further information: Category:Winston Beach F.C. players Managerial history :Further information: Category:Winston Beach F.C. managers Honors * League A :*'Champions (1)': 2006-07 * League B :*'Champions (2)': 1995-96, 2003-04 :*''Runners-up (1): 2017-18 :*'Playoff winners (1)''': 2013-14 Category:Winston Beach F.C. Category:Club pages